Cultivating Innovative, Pragmatic, Randomized Controlled Registry Trials Embedded in Hemodialysis Care: Conference Proceeding From Gardener’s Grove 2023

Purpose of the Conference: Hemodialysis is a life-sustaining treatment for patients with end-stage kidney disease. However, patients on dialysis continue to face poor quality of life and short life expectancies. Despite this, the nephrology community conducts the fewest randomized controlled trials of any medical discipline, relying instead on expert opinion to guide many aspects of hemodialysis care. There is a need to conduct high-quality pragmatic randomized controlled trials in hemodialysis to drive evidence-based practice. To this end, the Innovative Clinical Trials in Hemodialysis Centers initiative, with the support of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and its Strategy for Patient-Oriented Research, funded the development of 6 pragmatic trial protocols. Gardener’s Grove 2023 created a space to support the development of these trials and increase awareness and knowledge of past, ongoing, and future innovative, pragmatic, randomized controlled registry trials embedded in routine hemodialysis care. This report summarizes the proceedings of this conference. Sources of information: The conference included 6 panel presentations, each featuring an overview of a new pragmatic trial followed by expert panel feedback from patient partners, nephrologists, researchers, and health care providers. The conference also included 10 educational sessions led by clinicians and researchers with experience in the fields of kidney medicine and clinical trials. Methods: Gardener’s Grove 2023 was a 4-day virtual conference held in March of 2023. Recordings of all the conference presentations were later published on the Gardener’s Grove website and are summarized in the Supplemental Appendix of this report. Key Findings: The conference brought together 118 Canadian and international researchers, patients, and health care providers to collaborate on 6 pragmatic trials intended to test interventions to improve hemodialysis care. The proposed trials included (1) PREventing FracturEs in REnal Disease (PREFERRED), (2) DIALysis with EXpanded solute removal (DIALEX), (3) Sodium fOr diaLysis oUTcome rEduction (SOLUTE), (4) Finding the right blood pressure target for patients on dialysis, (5) DIuretic Use in patients with Residual renal function on hemodialysis (DIURESED), and (6) Lower vs higher dialysate bicarbonate concentration in patients receiving hemodialysis (Dial-Bicarb). All of these interventions were widely supported and received valuable feedback from panelists and conference attendees. The education sessions focused on various design and execution elements of pragmatic, randomized controlled registry trials embedded in routine care. Limitations: The conference could have been improved by streamlining session topics and pacing, allowing additional time for discussions, strengthening online network opportunities, and improving survey response rates. A follow-up conference is planned to take place in a few years, and the coordinators will aim to implement these changes. Implications: Gardener’s Grove 2023 successfully created a space for patients, researchers, and health care providers to support the development of 6 new pragmatic trials in hemodialysis care. Since Gardener’s Grove 2023, several of these trials have secured CIHR funding, obtained ethics approval, and are actively preparing to launch their interventions.